Football preview: ACU vs. ACU

Coming off a loss against University of North Texas last week, ACU will look to bounce back in their first home game against the Arizona Christian Firestorm this weekend.

Allowing 51 points and 456 yards of offense, ACU’s defense didn’t play their best game against UNT, but they continued to make adjustments throughout the game. This weekend’s matchup will serve as an opportunity for ACU to get back into rhythm and find their flow as a team, said head coach Adam Dorrel.

“The slow start was not what we wanted, but we eventually settled in, and I’m proud of our players and coaches,” Dorrel said. “We played a good second half against the North Texas starters and gained some confidence against a FBS opponent. Our young guys received some much needed experience, and the mistakes we made are correctable.”

Senior running backs Tracy James and Billy McCrary carried the offensive load against UNT, tallying a combined three touchdowns and 189 rushing yards.

Both of them will be a key factor running a fluid offense against the Firestorm. Last season, James and McCrary both ended the season with 700+ rushing yards.

“It’s nice (sharing the backfield) with Billy,” James said. “We can each get rest, and when one comes out, the other can go in and do the same exact stuff. It keeps the pressure off the offense.”

The Firestorm have been a football program since 2014, winning their conference championship in 2015 and 2016. Also, they signed their largest recruiting class this summer with 92 commits. The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) team will go into a tough Wildcat Stadium looking for their first win this season.

“We’re not going to be light on them,” James said. “Our mentality versus them will be similar to how we are versus North Texas or Central Arkansas.”

“Like Tracy said, we can’t take them lightly,” McCrary said. “They have a whole new team with Div. I athletes, and we have to treat them the same as North Texas.”

ACU will look to find its groove as a team this weekend and showcase their talent in the first home game.

“Our players are really excited and they’ve gone into their classes and on social media to get their classmates in the stands for this ball game,” Dorrel said. “We have a whole campus full of freshmen who’ve never experienced an ACU football game, and we’re reaching out to them and the whole Abilene community.”

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